#SXSWedu

It's a big bustling conference stretching over four days with with lots of hangouts, receptions, and announcements. It's not mission-focused and coherent
(e.g., better blended and online learning) like an iNACOL event; there's a stronger startup culture than at an ISTE event; there are more teachers than at
ASU, but some of it (i.e., keynote choices) like Austin, were just weird. Oh, and it was cold, like freezing rain cold.

SXSWedu
is the first of the spring EdTech trifecta. A half a dozen of the Getting Smart team braved the cold for the queso
and kicked out 10 blogs and hundreds of tweets.

In the opening slot, Alex Hernandez, Charter School Growth Fund, and I kicked of our annual Investing in Education Innovation workshop. "There's never been
a better time to be an entrepreneur," said Alex. We crowdsourced some trends and commented on two dozen pitches as Edupreneurs took a dip in the Dolphin Tank (and kinder gentler Shark
Tank).

With Digital Learning Now and The Learning Accelerator, we hosted a school design workshop where teams cooked up a few Blended Learning Recipes. Check out this live report from high school junior Brianna Soliz.

Many of the sessions were very traditional and really boring--panel of four with table top microphones. The organizers should read my recent post on Designing Powerful Learning Experiences. It's time to flip and blend
SXSW.

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